Cold emailing is one of the best skills to have in 2021. Here, we’ll cover what you should do to get your next internship or job. This document will be targeted towards tech and computer science students, but it can also be useful for students in other fields.
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Why try cold emailing? It works. We’ve used these simple tips and techniques to land interviews at Microsoft, Google, Dell, and many more big tech companies. By emailing a recruiter with the right content at the right time, you can land first round interviews at these amazing companies, and more.
Smart people always check their emails. So, if they find value in yours, they will reply and take things forward. However, it all depends on your email — which will be awesome after using the techniques discussed here.
Let’s get started.
What is a cold email?
When you freeze your computer and send an email, it’s called a cold email… Just kidding! A simple email to someone you don’t know is a cold email. You can email any random person on this planet and, if they like your email, there’s a high chance they will respond. This is how you build your network.
There are three parts of a cold email: the subject line, content, and value. The subject can be simple (nothing too fancy), but the content needs to be great. This will only work if you put in the work, you have the skills, and you are ACTUALLY very interested in what you’re emailing about.
So, for getting a design internship, you have to both show and tell about the amazing work you’ve been doing. It’s likely that if you tell someone you’re just starting out and they should hire you as an intern, you will be ghosted. Don’t do that. Do your work, make something awesome, and then add it there. This takes us to the next part, which is the selling point.
Selling point
Whenever you are sending an email, you have to keep your selling point in mind. Why should they talk to you? What value do you bring? How hard have you worked? WHY YOU?
It is important to think of different things you can show off about yourself, since you only have about 6–10 seconds to impress someone. Recruiters and managers are super busy, so it’s crucial to consider the time frame and come up with something simple and catchy.
For developers, the selling point could be anything from a nice Github profile to a published project with actual users. It doesn’t have to be something crazy and you don’t have to be the best out there. It’s important to show that you’re working hard and actually building things.
Here are some examples of how you can use something your work to your advantage:
Project
I’ve been working on my app, which you can see here: Link. I’ve used the MERN (mongo, express, react, node) stack to develop this over the course of 3 months, and I can use these skills to my advantage if I get the internship opportunity.
GitHub
For the last 6 months, I’ve regularly updated my Github with multiple projects, coding questions, and class related stuff, which you can find here: Link. Most of these have been in react and node js, but I’m open to learning new things.
Hackathons
I’ve attended multiple hackathons in the last 6 months, creating over 4 mobile and web dev projects. You can find some of them on my Github here (Link), and I would be more than happy to share all more with you over a call or email.
Project
For the last 3 months, I’ve been working on a project called ’30 days coding’. I’m helping students prepare for coding interviews by compiling the best free resources out there. We’ve helped thousands of students land internships and jobs in the last 6 months.
Classes
I’m a student, and, for the last 6 months, I’ve taken 3 more classes than the average sophomore student. Not only this, I’ve earned A’s in all of them, and I’m continuing to work harder than before. I’ve also started gaining skills outside of school and would love to gain some more through the internship at your {company}.
Startup
I’ve been working with a startup called {name} where we’ve created a dashboard to find cat cafes near your location. We’ve had thousands of users since then and we aim to grow even more in the future. The mobile app uses react native, and I’ve learned about navigation, routing, architecture, and other amazing things that can be done with react native.
Templates
Here’s a written sample:
Hey {recruiter’s name},
{Intro}: Hope you’re doing well. I’m a Computer Science student at {college} and am really interested in the New-grad SDE position at Amazon.
{Work experience}
This past summer, I was an intern at {} where I developed a web app using MERN tech stack. I’ve enjoyed developing mobile and web apps before, some of which you can find on my Github here.
My skills include: Frontend, Backend, Full-stack, Mobile, and Web development. I’ve had 4+ internships before with 10+ open source projects under my name. Here are some of the useful links for more information: Github, Portfolio, LinkedIn, {skills and links}
{Ending message}
I’ve also attached my resume for your reference. Looking forward to hearing from you! Thank you.
Regards,
Name
Linkedin, links…
Some important takeaways:
- Add your links wherever possible.
- Add skills that the company uses. This could be something generic like mobile and web dev.
Timing
It’s also important to time your emails. Here are some steps to follow
- Find the recruiter/manager’s location.
- Schedule the email for the next working day’s morning.
Subject
It’s important to have a subject line and it’s totally fine to keep it simple. Here are some examples:
- New grad 2021, Pinterest
- Software Engineer Intern 2021, Amazon
- College grad looking for New role
Including the recruiter’s or manager’s name would also make some difference. But, at the end of the day ,it’s about what works for you. Try different things, see what works out, and then use that to succeed.
Sample Linkedin message
Hey! I’m a junior computer science student at UMass Amherst, and am looking for summer 2022 internships. I was an intern last summer at xyz and I’ve created abc or {something else here.}.
Please let me know if you can refer me for this position {link}. I’ve attached my resume for your reference.
Additional things you can add:
- Attach projects/links etc.
- Your leetcode stats
Resources
- 8 Cold Email Tips To Land Your Dream Job (With 3 Successful Examples)
- 8 Cold email templates
- How to write a cold email — Data Science Career Map
How to write a cold email for job applications (with email templates) — 2021 update
